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It’s amazing how things like what we eat and the natural aging process take a toll on our smile’s appearance. Over time, you may notice that your pearly whites are no longer as white as they used to be. Fortunately, your Westminster dentist Dr. Patrick Gallagher can change all that with professional teeth whitening.

How Teeth Whitening Works

What makes professional teeth whitening from your cosmetic dentist in Westminster so much more effective than commercial whitening products is that it contains a highly concentrated amount of hydrogen peroxide. While retail whitening kits may contain hydrogen peroxide it is nowhere near as strong or as effective. Hydrogen peroxide is used to lift stains that are trapped under the enamel and dentin layers of the tooth.

Whitening works best on stains that are caused by:

Certain foods like berries, tomato sauces and other dark condiments

Dark drinks like cola, tea, wine and coffee

Smoking

Natural aging

Teeth whitening isn’t always as effective on stains caused by injury or certain prescription medications. These stains tend to be internal in nature and teeth whitening is only designed to remove surface stains.

Getting Your Teeth Whitened

Your Westminster, MD dentist will be able to determine whether teeth whitening is the appropriate cosmetic treatment for you. If you’ve been deemed a great candidate you have two whitening options: at-home or in-office treatment.

If you choose in-office whitening it may be a bit more expensive but you’ll get a visibly whiter smile in just one hour. This is a great option for patients looking to get a smile up to eight shades whiter before a big event. When you come into the office for whitening we will thoroughly clean your teeth before applying the whitening gel. Then we will use a laser to activate the gel and speed up the whitening process. Most sessions involve three, 15-minute whitening gel applications.

If you choose to whiten from the convenience of your own home we will custom-fit you with whitening trays that will be filled with peroxide gel. These whitening trays will most likely be worn every day. We will tell you how long to wear them each day before starting to see results. It will take a couple weeks before you start to notice results but your smile can get several shades lighter with at-home whitening.

Patrick Gallagher III, DDS is ready to get your smile more radiant before your next big event. Call our Westminster dental office today and let us give you a smile you’ll be all too happy to show off.

A few days before the Oscars, Vanity Fair magazine asked Academy Awards host Neil Patrick Harris to name his most treasured possession. Was it his Tony award statuette for best leading actor in a musical? His star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame? The stethoscope he wore while playing teenaged doctor Doogie Howser on TV? No, as it turns out, the 41-year-old actor’s most treasured possession is… his wisdom teeth. Yes, you read that correctly. “Oddly, I still have my four wisdom teeth,” Harris said. “I refuse to let them go or I’ll lose my wise parts.”

How odd is it for a 41-year-old to have wisdom teeth? Actually, not that odd at all. While it is true that wisdom teeth are often removed, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to this. It all depends on whether they are causing problems now, or are likely to cause problems in the future.

The trouble wisdom teeth cause is related to the fact that they are the last molars to come in, and that molars are large in size. By the time wisdom teeth appear between the ages of 17 and 21, there often is not enough room for them in the jaw. Sometimes it’s because you may have inherited a jaw size that’s too small for your tooth size; and generally speaking, the size of the human jaw has evolved to become smaller over time.

If room is lacking, the adjacent molar (that came in earlier) can interfere with the path of eruption — causing the wisdom tooth to come in at an odd angle. The wisdom tooth can hit up against that other tooth, possibly causing pain or damaging the adjacent tooth. This is known as “impaction.” Sometimes the wisdom tooth breaks only partway through the gum tissue, leaving a space beneath the gum line that’s almost impossible to clean, causing infection. A serious oral infection can jeopardize the survival of teeth, and even spread to other parts of the body.

If a wisdom tooth is impacted, will you know it? Not necessarily. A tooth can be impacted without causing pain. But we can see the position of your wisdom teeth on a dental x-ray and help you make an informed decision as to whether they should stay or go. If removal is the best course of action, rest assured that this procedure is completely routine and that your comfort and safety is our highest priority. If there is no great risk to keeping them, as Neil Patrick Harris has done, we can simply continue to monitor their condition at your regular dental checkups. It will be particularly important to make sure you are reaching those teeth with your brush and floss, and that you keep to your schedule of regular professional cleanings at the dental office. All healthy teeth are indeed worth treasuring.

Your teeth’s hard, enamel coating protects them from environmental dangers or disease. But although it’s made of the hardest substance in the human body, enamel isn’t invincible — prolonged exposure to acid can cause dental erosion, a condition in which the enamel’s mineral content permanently dissolves, a process known as de-mineralization.

De-mineralization occurs anytime our mouth environment becomes too acidic due to eating or drinking items with high acid content. Saliva normally neutralizes mouth acid in thirty minutes to an hour after we eat, as well as restores mineral content to the enamel (re-mineralization). Danger arises, though, if the saliva’s buffering action is overwhelmed by chronic acidity, caused mainly by constant snacking or sipping on acidic foods and beverages throughout the day — in this situation, saliva can’t complete the process of buffering and re-mineralization.

As a result, the enamel may permanently lose its mineral content and strength over time. This permanent dental erosion leads to serious consequences: the teeth become more susceptible to decay; the dentin becomes exposed, which causes pain and sensitivity to pressure and temperature changes; and changes in the teeth’s size and color can negatively alter your appearance.

It’s important to take action then before dental erosion occurs. Along with daily oral hygiene, restrict your consumption of acidic foods and beverages to meal times and cut back on between-meal snacks. Rather than a sports drink after exercising, drink nature’s hydrator — water. You should also alter your brushing habits slightly — rather than brush right after you eat, wait thirty minutes to an hour. This gives saliva time to restore the mouth to its normal pH and re-mineralize the enamel. Brushing right after can remove even more of the minerals in softened enamel.

If significant erosion has occurred, there are a number of treatment options we can undertake to preserve remaining tooth structure and enhance your appearance. In moderate cases, we can reshape and cover damaged teeth using dental materials like composite resins or porcelain to fill decayed areas or cover teeth with veneers or crowns.

The key of course, is to identify dental erosion through clinical examination as soon as possible to minimize damage. Your enamel plays a critical role in protecting your teeth from disease — so take the right steps to protect your enamel.

Via a recent Instagram post, pop diva Ariana Grande became the latest young celebrity to publicly acknowledge a dental milestone: having her wisdom teeth removed. The singer of hits such as “Break Free” and “Problem” posted an after-surgery picture of herself (wearing her signature cat-eye eyeliner), with a caption addressed to her teeth: “Peace out, final three wisdom teeth. It’s been real.”

With the post, Grande joined several other celebs (including Lily Allen, Paris Hilton and Emile Hirsch) who have shared their dental surgery experience with fans. Will "wisdom teeth removal" become a new trending topic on social media? We aren’t sure — but we can explain a bit about the procedure, and why many younger adults may need it.

Technically called the “third molars,” wisdom teeth usually begin to emerge from the gums between the ages of 17 and 25 — presumably, around the same time that a certain amount of wisdom emerges. Most people have four of these big molars, which are located all the way in the back of the mouth, on the left and right sides of the upper and lower jaws.

But when wisdom teeth begin to appear, there’s often a problem: Many people don’t have enough space in their jaws to accommodate them. When these molars lack sufficient space to fully erupt (emerge), they are said to be “impacted.” Impacted teeth can cause a number of serious problems: These may include pain, an increased potential for bacterial infections, periodontal disease, and even the formation of cysts (pockets of infection below the gum line), which can eventually lead to tooth and bone loss.

In most cases, the best treatment for impacted wisdom teeth is extraction (removal) of the problem teeth. Wisdom tooth extraction is a routine, in-office procedure that is usually performed under local anesthesia or “conscious sedation,” a type of anesthesia where the patient remains conscious (able to breathe normally and respond to stimuli), but is free from any pain or distress. Anti-anxiety medications may also be given, especially for those who are apprehensive about dental procedures.

So if you find you need your wisdom teeth extracted, don’t be afraid to “Break Free” like Ariana Grande did; whether you post the results on social media is entirely up to you. If you would like more information about wisdom tooth extraction, please call our office to schedule a consultation. You can learn more in the Dear Doctor magazine articles “Wisdom Teeth” and “Removing Wisdom Teeth.”

If you have crooked teeth, you've likely wondered how much better your smile would look if they were straight. The process of wearing metal braces might be somewhat of a deterrent, especially if you're an adult. But imagine having straight teeth without the discomfort of metal braces! With Invisalign from Dr. Patrick Gallagher, your Westminster, Maryland dentist, this is a reality! Invisalign is a process in which you wear clear plastic trays, called aligners, that gently place pressure on your teeth to move them into their proper place. Here's how it works:

What's involved in the Invisalign process?

The extent of your alignment issues will be evaluated by your Westminster dentist, Dr. Patrick Gallagher. Digital images, as well as a physical examination, will help determine the course of your Invisalign treatment. The images your Westminster dentist takes will be sent to a laboratory that specializes in creating aligners; those images will be used to craft a series of aligners that will fit against your teeth perfectly. As your teeth move, the aligner you're wearing will be swapped out for the next one in the series. If you wear your aligner for the prescribed amount of time (20 to 22 hours each day), you will change out aligners approximately every two weeks. For many adults, the average treatment time is about one year, although that varies with each case.

What happens after I'm finished with my last aligner?

In some cases, your teeth will still need some adjustment. Your Westminster dentist will take a new set of impressions and the Invisalign laboratory will craft one to three refinement aligners. This situation is worked into the cost of Invisalign and you will not be charged extra fees.

Once the Invisalign regimen is finished, retainers will need to be worn to maintain your new smile. The amount of time you wear your retainer will be determined by your Westminster dentist.

Ready for a comfortable and practically invisible approach to straighter teeth? Contact Dr. Patrick Gallagher's office in Westminster, MD for a consultation today!

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